Floppy Days 160 - The KayPro, Part 4, with Matt Jones

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Hello, and welcome to episode 160 of the Floppy Days Podcast for February, 2026. I'm Randy Kindig, your host. We are currently covering computers introduced in the year 1982 and, to that end, we are at the tail end of a series of podcasts about the Kaypro line of computers. Kaypro had a rich and varied family of computers; certainly much more so than I ever realized. I was able to interview David Kay, son of the founder of KayPro, and president of the company for some time, in the first two episodes. Last month, Matthew Jones, an aficionado of the KayPro computers and owner of many of the models, helped me talk about KayPro history, tech specs, and more, through the topic of using the machine. This month Matt and I complete the KayPro series by starting with books and magazines and ending with current Web sites and a lot more content in between.

I will have a video version of this episode posted to the Floppy Days Podcast channel on YouTube (https://www.YouTube.com/@floppydayspodcast ) that will be available for everyone soon (after the early access period for Patreon supporters has expired). So, please consider becoming a subscriber on YouTube. Doing so helps support the podcast.

You will hear ads from some great vintage computer stores, themselves vintage computer fans, throughout the early part of this podcast. For all of these storefronts, when you place an order, please mention Floppy Days in the notes or comments of the order. Doing so will help support the podcast. Many thanks!!

New Acquisitions

Atari XF551 - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atari_XF551

Upcoming Shows

Schedule Published on Floppy Days Website - https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vSeLsg4hf5KZKtpxwUQgacCIsqeIdQeZniq3yE881wOCCYskpLVs5OO1PZLqRRF2t5fUUiaKByqQrgA/pub
Indy Classic Computer and Video Game Expo - March 20-22 - Wyndham Indianapolis Airport Hotel, Indianapolis, IN - https://indyclassic.org/
Atari Invasion 2k26 (10th Anniversary) - March 21 - Maarssen, Netherlands - https://www.atari-invasion.nl
VCF East - April 17-19 2026 - InfoAge Science and History Museums, Wall, NJ - https://vcfed.org/events/vintage-computer-festival-east/
Midwest Gaming Classic - April 24-26 - Baird Center, Milwaukee, WI - https://www.midwestgamingclassic.com/
The Annual "Last" Chicago CoCoFEST! - April 24-25, 2026 - Holiday Inn & Suites Chicago-Carol Stream (Wheaton), Carol Stream, Illinois - https://www.glensideccc.com/cocofest/
Commodore Los Angeles Super Show 2026 - April 25-26 - Burbank, CA - http://www.portcommodore.com/class
VCF Europe - May 1-3 - Munich, Germany - https://vcfe.org/E/
Vintage Computer Festival Pacific Northwest 2026 - May 2-3 - Tukwila Community Center, South Tukwila, WA - https://vcfpnw.org
VCF Southwest - May 29-31, 2026 - Westin Dallas Ft. Worth Airport - https://www.vcfsw.org/
Retrofest 2026 - May 30-31 - Steam Museum of the Great Western Railway, Swindon, UK - https://retrofest.uk/

Popular Magazines/Newsletters

Major September 1983 review in Byte - https://retrocmp.de/kaypro/1983_09_BYTE_08-09_Kaypro-II.pdf
Heavily featured in Micro Cornucopia; curated Kaypro index here - https://retrocmp.de/kaypro/kay-p13_micro-c.htm
First Osborne Group (FOG) - https://archive.org/details/foghornnewsletter
Non-Linear Systems published Pro-Files, a Kaypro users magazine - https://archive.org/search?query=collection%3Akayproprofiles&sort=-publicdate

Books

Chilton's Guide to Kaypro Repair and Maintenance by Gene Williams - https://amzn.to/4nQj6XV
Basic Kaypro for Kids Paperback by W. H. Darnell (Author), P. J. Barton (Author) - https://amzn.to/465ofFs
KayPro books at Amazon - https://amzn.to/4goRQgy
Kaypro II User's Guide (getting started, bundled software) - https://messui.polygonal-moogle.com/comp/kaypro_um.pdf
Dealer Quick Reference Manual - https://archive.org/details/bitsavers_kayproKaypManual1982_1562045/page/n2/mode/1up
Using the Kaypro II personal computer by Lord, Kenniston W - https://archive.org/details/usingkayproiiper0000lord
The instant expert's guide to the Kaypro II by Bennett, M. D - https://archive.org/details/instantexpertsgu0000benn
KayPro Documentation, including KayPro Technical Manual - https://archive.org/details/the-kaypro-II-users-guide/1484-D_KayproTechnicalManual_Dec84/

Software

ROMs for KayPro - https://archive.org/details/KayproII_201809
TOSEC (The Old School Emulation Center) software collection at archive.org - https://archive.org/details/bitsavers_kayproKaypManual1982_1562045/page/n2/mode/1up
Software images - https://mame.spludlow.co.uk/SoftwareLists.aspx?Exact=true&List=kaypro

Ads and Appearances

Starring the Computer - https://www.starringthecomputer.com/computer.html?c=185

Modern Upgrades

Fl...